OVERVIEW
The Department of Theatre engages in a continuous process of reviewing, revising, and developing policies and practices that support and advance our vision, including establishing consent-based practices in the classroom and rehearsal hall, developing transparent and equitable work-load policies for faculty, and adopting inclusive season selection and casting practices.
DEPARTMENTAL JEDI COMMITTEE
The Department of Theatre Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee was founded in Winter 2021. Modeled after the College of Fine Arts' own JEDI Committee, its membership is open to all members of the Department of Theatre. The JEDI Committee’s fundamental charge is to lead the Department of Theatre’s work in becoming a place that is respectful of and welcoming to people from all backgrounds and identities. This work will be conducted through a process of collective and individual introspection and education in conversation with Department members, with special attention to the concerns of communities that have traditionally been silenced in theatre and academic communities.
POLICIES & PROCEDURES
CASTING
The casting policies of the University of Utah Department of Theatre are reviewed and updated on a regular basis. To download the most recent version of our casting policies, click the link below.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT
It is our current policy to publicly acknowledge the indigenous peoples who have been displaced from the territory on which we live and work. We also recognize that such statements are insufficient unless supported by reflection, education, and concrete action. The following land acknowledgment statement was developed by the University of Utah's Native American Land Use Committee and approved by the University of Utah in 2020:
| The University of Utah has both historical and contemporary relationships with Indigenous peoples. Given that the Salt Lake Valley has always been a gathering place for Indigenous peoples, we acknowledge that this land, which is named for the Ute Tribe, is the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Shoshone, Paiute, Goshute, and Ute Tribes and is a crossroad of the Indigenous peoples of Utah. Through this statement, the University of Utah recognizes the enduring relationships between many Indigenous peoples and their traditional homelands. We are grateful for the territory upon which we gather today and respect Utah’s Indigenous peoples, the original stewards of this land. We value the sovereign relationships that exist between tribal governments, state governments, and the federal government. Today, approximately 60,000 American Indian and Alaskan Native peoples live in Utah. As a state institution, the University of Utah is committed to serving Native communities throughout Utah in partnership with Native Nations and our Urban Indian communities through research, education, and community outreach activities. |
For more information about the University of Utah's land acknowledgment, visit https://attheu.utah.edu/facultystaff/indigenous-land-acknowledgement/
REPORTING INCIDENTS
If you need to report an incident and are not sure where to start, the SafeU website has a step-by-step guide for reporting incidents of any kind that occur in the campus community.
THE WORK
TRAININGS & WORKSHOPS
The Department of Theatre regularly invites professional educators and practitioners to teach workshops and training sessions for our students, faculty and staff. Below is a partial list of trainings and workshops we have planned and/or hosted. For information about upcoming events, bookmark this page or email
-
-
- Faculty workshop on white privilege with School of Social Work facilitator, fall 2015
- Faculty and student workshops on privilege and anti-racism with Dr. Wazir Jefferson, 2016-2017
- Workshop on microaggressions for faculty and staff with Ella Blanchard (Office for Inclusive Excellence), 2018
- Workshops on theatrical intimacy and consent for faculty, 2018
- Hosted workshops on theatrical intimacy for students, theatre educators and theatre professionals from across the state of Utah, 2019
- Microaggression and Anti-Racism workshop for faculty and staff with Jesse Portillo and Margaret Toomey, 2020
- Decolonizing theatre-making conversation for students with All My Relations Collective, 2020
- Microaggressions workshop for faculty and staff with Ella Blanchard, Office for Inclusive Excellence, 2021
- Student Town Hall on bias incident reporting process with Ella Blanchard, Office for Inclusive Excellence, 2021
- College of Fine Arts JEDI training sessions with Dr. Nimisha Barton (six sessions), 2021-2022
- Power dynamics and communication workshop for Theatre faculty and staff with Randee Levine, 2021
- Community Wellness Conversation: Representation Roundtable with Alicia Washington (Founder and Co-Director, Good Company Theatre), Brian Vaughn (Artistic Director, Utah Shakespeare Festival), Jerry Rapier (Artistic Director, Plan-B Theatre), Penelope Caywood (Artistic Director, Youth Theatre at the U), Shelby Gist (Co-Artistic Director, An Other Theater Company), 2021
- Community Wellness Conversation: T. Oliver Reid (Co-founder of the Black Theatre Coalition), 2021
- Anti-racism training for faculty and staff with Dr. Teshia Koffi (Office for Inclusive Excellence), 2021
- Community Wellness Conversation: “Embody the Change You Want to See” (Body Positivity) with Kelsie Jepsen, 2021
- Calling In vs Calling Out: Using Forum Theatre to Address Microaggressions with Drs. Gretchen A. Case and Candace Chow (School of Medicine), 2021
- Radical Love: An Exploration of Self-Care and Sustainability in the Performing Arts Field with Adam D-F Stevens, MA, RDT, 2021
- Power & Consent in the Creative Process with Nicole Perry (Momentum Stage), 2021
- Accessibility & the Arts workshop for faculty and staff with Dr. Angela M. Smith (Disability Studies), 2022
- Pathway to Richer Relationships: Exploring Bias, Social Location and Privilege for students, faculty, and staff, with Beatrice Thomas, 2022
- Title IX training for faculty and staff with Erica Wood, Office for Equal Opportunity, Title IX, and Affirmative Action, 2022
-
RESOURCES
DEPARTMENT
Some of the following links lead to resources that are hosted on Canvas, the learning management system used by the University of Utah. Access to these resources is currently limited to members of the Theatre department. If you wish to access a restricted document, email us at . Please include the name of the resource and its intended use in your email, and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
GET STARTED
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate from the University of Southern Florida: https://www.usf.edu/business/certificates/diversity-equity-inclusion/
- Feminism and Social Justice Course through Coursera & University of California, Santa Cruz: https://www.coursera.org/learn/feminism-social-justice
- An Introduction to Accessibility and Inclusive Design Course through Coursera & University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: https://www.coursera.org/learn/accessibility
- "Game Changer" a Documentary about Tim Nugent presented by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGqzYdysVSc
- The EDI Workplace Certificate Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHzeZLfJzCI
UNIVERSITY
- University of Utah Indigenous Land Acknowledgment Statement
- Report a Bias Incident
- University of Utah Division of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
- Subscribe to the EDI Newsletter: https://diversity.utah.edu/blog/
- American Indian Resource Center
- Black Cultural Center
- Center for Ethnic Student Affairs
- Dream Center
- LGBT Resource Center
- New Leadership Academy Fellows Program
- Office for Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
- Office for Inclusive Excellence
-
-
An Exploration of Self-Care & Sustainability in the Performing Arts ...
